Approaching age 2

I can't believe my two little ones will be TWO in a little over two months. What?! Where is all the time going?! That means we are almost halfway to preschool (if they go at age 4)....and that a year from now we will be half way to kindergarten....geez. Someone give me a chill pill already. :)

Brooklyn and Billy have been under the weather the past week. Brooklyn's nose started running on last Sunday and I could tell sickness was coming...Usually when one of our twins gets sick, the other one gets sick a few days later, and they share back and forth for a week or so until they are better. :) Welcome to life with two toddlers that are inseparable. Haha :)

Luckily, they are finally feeling better and are snoozing away right now without the assistance of mommy. When they are both sick, one of our twins sleeps like normal but the other one (who shall remain unnamed) has a really hard time resting. And s/he clings to mommy like no other. I'll let you guess which one that is. ;)

But alas, all is well again in the Helton household!

Billy and Brooklyn are growing so much right now. I looked at a picture of them from a year ago today and was caught off guard at just how much our "babies" have become toddlers. It tinges at my heart strings. I took them to my sister's hair shop last Friday and they got big boy and big girl haircuts. They sat in the chair with aprons on and suckers in hand, and did incredibly well. I think they enjoy being "big" kids.

They have started enjoying going on little excursions during the day, so they will bring me shoes (that are often mismatched and in completely different colors and styles) and will say in an adorable voice, "Outside?" So if the weather doesn't permit playing outside, we load up in the car and take a trip around the block or we go on a trip to McDonald's (Shh, don't tell healthy mommies) to grab a small fry or chocolate cookies. Don't worry, I try to limit fast food to once a week. Silence the alarms.

Billy IV has learned to "jump" and is quite the acrobat. He is going to be a basketball start one day. Just wait! Brooklyn Rose has recently started saying "love you" when I say it to her.

I. adore. my. children.

Please give me a remote so I can freeze time every now and then. Just for a second I promise. I try to soak up every smile, every hug, every giggle....but sometimes I still don't feel like that is enough. I snuggle with them when we first get up, I sing to them a good morning tune, I throw balls with Billy, I wrap up babies in blankets with Brooklyn....but sometimes I still don't feel like that is enough.

I know this is a little much, but to keep things in perspective, most mornings I take a second to imagine Billy and Brooklyn being off at college one day, and it really helps me to live in the moment. I then proceed to give them one thousand sugars and tell them "I love you" a few hundred times. :) My time with my two little ones is so precious to me and so dear to my heart.

Just a thought provoking question for the mommies out there, but how many of you actually "play" with your children? I mean, like, taking a break from your household chores/putting down the phone or computer/"getting down on the floor and playing with them?" I try to follow the rule of thumb that in each hour, I devote 45 min of undivided attention to the twins for every 15 minutes I spend on a household task. This helps me to keep a sense of balance and to not feel guilty for taking time away from them to do things I need to get done. Is this always this case? No. But do I feel incredibly peaceful and at ease when it is? Yes.